WO2014038060A1

WO2014038060A1 - Dc power supply device, and control method for dc power supply device

Info

Publication number: WO2014038060A1
Application number: PCT/JP2012/072854
Authority: WO
Inventors: 譲原　逸男; 俊幸安達; 真一小玉
Original assignee: 株式会社京三製作所
Priority date: 2012-09-07
Filing date: 2012-09-07
Publication date: 2014-03-13
Also published as: EP2879471A4; TW201412199A; PL2879471T3; KR101579416B1; EP2879471B1; JP5634626B2; CN104604337A; JPWO2014038060A1; KR20150038625A; IN2014KN03106A; US20150195896A1; DE12884110T1; CN104604337B; EP2879471A1; TWI491317B; US9137885B2

Abstract

In ignition mode, intermittent short circuit control is implemented such that a short circuit current flows into a current-source-type step-down chopper. Short-circuit current energy primarily accumulates in an inductor provided in the current-source-type step-down chopper. The accumulated energy boosts the output voltage of a DC power supply device by way of the flow of current during the time period until the next short circuit, a multiphase inverter, and a rectifier. The accumulation of current energy due to short circuiting, and boosting operations in which the output voltage is repeatedly boosted due to conduction are used to implement control in which the output voltage applied to a plasma generation device is increased.

Description

DC power supply and control method of DC power supply

The present invention relates to a DC power supply device, for example, a DC power supply device used for a load such as a plasma generator, and a control method for the DC power supply device.

In the manufacture of semiconductor devices, liquid crystal panels, disks, etc., sputtering processing, etc., a plasma processing process using plasma as a processing target such as a substrate is known. In this plasma processing step, DC power is supplied from the DC power supply device to the plasma generator, plasma is generated by, for example, converting the processing gas into plasma in the space inside the plasma generator, and the generated plasma forms a film on the surface of the substrate. Processing and etching are performed.

Normally, a plasma generator corresponds to an electrical load for a DC power supply device. The load at the start of plasma discharge until plasma discharge occurs and the load during normal operation in which plasma discharge is stably generated Different. Therefore, the DC power supply device normally applies an ignition voltage larger than the voltage during normal operation to the electrode for a certain period at the start of plasma discharge, and then applies a low discharge voltage during normal operation (Patent Document). 1). It is also known that the start of plasma discharge is detected by an inrush current (Patent Documents 2 and 3).

Further, a circuit using a resonance converter or a circuit using chopper control is known as a circuit for generating an ignition voltage for generating plasma discharge.

12A and 12B show an ignition voltage generation circuit using a resonant converter, FIG. 12A shows a circuit example of a series resonant converter, and FIG. 12B shows a parallel resonant converter circuit example. ing. In the circuit example shown in FIG. 12A, an LC series resonance circuit is connected between an inverter circuit and a converter composed of a diode rectifier circuit. In the circuit example shown in FIG. An LC parallel resonant circuit is connected to a converter composed of a rectifier circuit. An ignition voltage generating circuit using a resonant converter raises the ignition voltage by resonance.

FIG. 12C shows a circuit example of chopper control, in which a chopper circuit is provided between the DC source (Ein) and the inverter circuit. In the chopper control circuit, the ignition voltage is controlled by the on-duty ratio of the switching element provided in the chopper circuit.

JP2010-250661 (paragraph [0006]) JP-A-11-229138 (paragraph [0009]) JP 2002-173772 A (paragraph [0032])

In the device described in Patent Document 2, plasma is generated by applying a voltage larger than a set discharge voltage for a certain period, and in the device described in Patent Document 3, a voltage exceeding the rated value is instantaneously applied. The plasma discharge is ignited by application.

As described above, the voltage applied to ignite the plasma is a voltage greater than the discharge voltage or the rated voltage applied for a certain period or momentarily. The occurrence of plasma discharge varies, and when the applied voltage is low, it is necessary to set the application time longer.

In order to reliably generate plasma discharge in a short application time, it is necessary to generate a voltage higher than the discharge voltage or rated voltage.

Therefore, the DC power supply device that supplies DC power to the plasma generator has a problem that the DC power supply device becomes complicated and large in order to increase the voltage used to generate plasma discharge.

In addition, when plasma discharge is generated at a low applied voltage, the application time becomes long, so that there is a problem that the processing time in the plasma generator becomes long.

In addition, when a series resonant converter and a parallel resonant converter are used in the ignition voltage generation circuit, the voltage is raised by the resonance operation, so that the maximum value of the ignition voltage is boosted only up to twice the input DC voltage Edc. There is a problem that can not be. In order to increase the ignition voltage, it is necessary to increase the input DC voltage Edc, and it is necessary to prepare a high-voltage DC source.

In the ignition voltage generation circuit, when the chopper control is used, the inverter circuit is not provided with a resonance circuit, so that there is a problem that the maximum value of the ignition voltage can be obtained only up to the input DC voltage Ein in the step-down chopper circuit.

Therefore, even in an ignition voltage generation circuit using a resonance circuit or a chopper circuit, there is a problem that the DC power supply device becomes complicated and large in order to increase the voltage used for generating plasma discharge.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-described conventional problems, and to simplify and miniaturize a device configuration for forming a high voltage for generating plasma discharge in a DC power supply device that supplies DC power to a plasma generator. .

It is another object of the present invention to shorten the voltage application time required for generating plasma discharge without using a large-sized and complicated DC power supply.

When performing DC processing by supplying DC power to a load such as a plasma generator, a step of generating a plasma discharge in the plasma generator when the power is turned on or restarted is performed. At this time, a voltage higher than the voltage applied during normal operation, called an ignition voltage, is applied from the DC power supply device to the plasma generator to generate plasma discharge.

The present invention relates to a DC power supply that generates a voltage to be applied to a plasma generator in order to generate a plasma discharge, and a control method for the DC power supply.

It is necessary to boost the voltage applied to the plasma generator to the ignition set voltage required to generate plasma discharge. The direct current power supply device of the present invention repeats the process of passing a current through the current source step-down chopper unit included in the direct current power supply device a plurality of times, and sequentially increases the output voltage using the energy of each current to set the ignition set voltage. Boost to.

The direct current power supply device of the present invention cuts off the current path from the current source step-down chopper section to the output terminal of the direct current power supply device for a short time in order to allow a current to flow in the current source step-down chopper section for a short time. A short circuit current is passed through the chopper. Since the current path to the output terminal of the DC power supply device is interrupted, the current of the current source step-down chopper unit is temporarily accumulated in the inductor included in the current source step-down chopper unit.

After that, when the interruption of the current path to the output terminal of the DC power supply device is released and a current path from the current source step-down chopper unit to the output terminal of the DC power supply device is formed, the DC power supply is generated by the energy accumulated in the inductor. Boost the voltage at the output of the device. The voltage at the output terminal of the DC power supply device is boosted to the ignition set voltage by repeating boosting of the output terminal by accumulating and releasing current.

FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining an operation for generating a short-circuit current and a step-up operation for an output voltage due to the short-circuit current according to the present invention.

FIG. 1A is a diagram for explaining an operation of generating a short-circuit current. In the current source step-down chopper unit or the multiphase inverter unit, a short circuit current Δi is caused to flow through the current source step-down chopper unit by short-circuiting the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side. The energy of the short circuit current Δi is stored in the inductance L.

FIG. 1B is a diagram for explaining the output voltage boosting operation. When the short-circuit operation is stopped and the current source step-down chopper unit and the multiphase inverter unit are switched to the connected state, the energy stored in the inductance L is converted into a voltage, and the output voltage is boosted. In FIG. 1B, the voltage of the output capacitor _Co is boosted. When the load side has a capacitor, the output voltage is boosted by a parallel circuit of the output capacitor _Co and the load side capacitor.

The DC power supply device of the present invention controls the switching element of the bridge circuit of the multiphase inverter connected to the current source step-down chopper unit to short-circuit the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side. A switching element is connected between the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the output terminal, and this switching element can be controlled to short-circuit the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side.

The direct current power supply device of the present application accumulates the current flowing in the current source step-down chopper by the short circuit in the inductance L, and converts the accumulated current into energy to boost the output voltage. Since the step-up due to a single short circuit is small, the output voltage is increased stepwise by repeating the step-up process due to the short circuit a plurality of times, and is increased to the ignition set voltage. In addition, the amount of boost due to a single short-circuit can be increased by extending the short-circuit time for short-circuiting the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side. However, the smaller the boost amount, the higher the output voltage. In this case, the boosting width can be finely adjusted, the boosting resolution can be increased, and this is advantageous in controlling the output voltage.

The short time current path formed in the current source step-down chopper section is obtained by simply short-circuiting the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side in the circuit of the current source step-down chopper section or the circuit of the multiphase inverter section connected to this circuit. Since it can be formed, the DC power supply device can be made simple and compact.

[DC power supply]
A DC power supply apparatus for supplying DC power to a plasma generator according to the present invention includes a current source step-down chopper unit constituting a DC source, and the DC output of the current source step-down chopper unit by using a plurality of switching elements to operate multi-phase AC power. A multi-phase inverter unit that converts the output of the multi-phase inverter unit into an AC / DC converter, a rectifier unit that supplies the obtained direct current to a load, a chopper control unit that controls the current source step-down chopper unit, and a multi-phase inverter unit The control part which has an inverter control part which controls is provided.

The control unit has two controls: switching control for switching the operation mode and intermittent short-circuit control for forming a current path in the circuit of the current source step-down chopper unit for a very short time.

The switching control switches between an ignition mode for supplying an ignition voltage for generating a plasma discharge in the plasma generator and a steady operation mode for supplying a steady operation current for continuing the plasma discharge of the plasma generator.

In intermittent short-circuit control, the positive and negative voltage sides of the current source step-down chopper and / or multiphase inverter are intermittently shorted, and this short circuit forms a current path in the current source step-down chopper circuit for a very short time. To pass a short-circuit current.

The control unit causes a short-circuit current to flow through the current source step-down chopper unit by performing intermittent short-circuit control in the ignition mode. The energy of this short-circuit current is temporarily stored in the inductor provided in the current source step-down chopper unit. The accumulated energy boosts the output voltage of the DC power supply device via the multiphase inverter unit and the rectifier unit during the period until the next short circuit. Control is performed to increase the output voltage applied to the plasma generation device by repeating the boosting operation of accumulating current energy due to this short circuit and boosting the output voltage due to conduction.

In this ignition mode, the chopper control unit performs pulse width control and controls the input voltage of the current source step-down chopper unit to a predetermined voltage.

In the ignition mode, the output voltage of the DC power supply device is determined by the step-up by a plurality of short-circuit operations and the input voltage of the current source step-down chopper unit determined by chopper control. The number of short-circuit operations required to boost the voltage to the ignition set voltage is related to the input voltage of the current source step-down chopper section, the time width of the ignition mode, the voltage width boosted by one short-circuit operation, and the like. Therefore, it can be determined based on the configuration and use conditions of the DC power supply device.

The control unit of the present invention uses, for example, the on-duty ratio of the chopper control of the chopper control unit and the number of intermittent short-circuit controls as parameters, and controls the input voltage of the current source step-down chopper unit according to the on-duty ratio, and the intermittent short-circuit control The step-up ratio can be controlled by the number of times, and the voltage rise of the output voltage can be controlled by the input voltage of the current source step-down chopper unit and the step-up ratio.

The intermittent short-circuit control of the present invention can be performed by an inverter control unit or a chopper control unit. The intermittent short-circuit control by the inverter control unit can be performed in a plurality of forms.

(First form of intermittent short-circuit control by inverter control unit)
The first form of intermittent short-circuit control by the inverter control unit of the present invention generates a gate pulse signal that controls the pulse width of the switching element of the bridge circuit that constitutes the multiphase inverter, and at the same time, the positive voltage side and the negative voltage of the bridge circuit A short circuit pulse signal that intermittently shorts the side is generated, a control signal is generated by superimposing the generated gate pulse signal and the short circuit pulse signal, and the multiphase inverter unit is controlled by this control signal.

The gate pulse signal in the control signal converts the direct current into alternating current by controlling the pulse width of each switching element of the bridge circuit of the multiphase inverter.

On the other hand, the short-circuit pulse signal in the control signal is connected to the positive voltage side of the bridge circuit by simultaneously turning on the pair of switching elements that are connected in series between the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the bridge circuit. Short-circuit between the terminals on the voltage side.

(Second form of intermittent short-circuit control by inverter control unit)
The second form of intermittent short-circuit control by the inverter control unit of the present invention is a gate that generates a gate pulse signal that controls the pulse width of the switching elements of the bridge circuit that constitutes the multiphase inverter, and that turns on each switching element. Switching that is turned on by a gate pulse signal among a pair of switching elements that are connected in series between the positive voltage side and negative voltage side terminals of the bridge circuit at any point within the time width of the pulse signal A pulse signal that turns on the switching element that is paired with the element is generated as a short-circuit pulse signal, and a control signal is generated by superimposing the generated gate pulse signal and the short-circuit pulse signal. Control part.

The gate pulse signal in the control signal converts the direct current into alternating current by controlling the pulse width of each switching element of the bridge circuit of the multiphase inverter. On the other hand, the short-circuit pulse signal in the control signal short-circuits the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the bridge circuit by the switching element that is turned on by the gate pulse signal and the switching element that is turned on by the short-circuit pulse signal.

(Third form of intermittent short-circuit control by the inverter controller)
The third form of intermittent short-circuit control by the inverter control unit of the present invention is to simultaneously turn on all the switching elements of the bridge circuit and the gate pulse signal for controlling the pulse width of the switching elements of the bridge circuit constituting the multiphase inverter. A pulse signal is generated as a short circuit pulse signal, a control signal is generated by superimposing the generated gate pulse signal and the short circuit pulse signal, and the multiphase inverter unit is controlled by this control signal.

The gate pulse signal in the control signal converts the direct current into alternating current by controlling the pulse width of each switching element of the bridge circuit of the multiphase inverter. On the other hand, the short-circuit pulse signal in the control signal turns on all the switching elements of the bridge circuit and short-circuits the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the bridge circuit.

(Fourth form of intermittent short-circuit control by the inverter controller)
The fourth form of intermittent short-circuit control by the inverter control unit of the present invention generates a gate pulse signal for controlling the pulse width of the switching element of the bridge circuit constituting the multiphase inverter, and includes the switching element included in the bridge circuit. A pulse signal is generated as a short-circuit pulse signal that simultaneously turns on at least one pair of switching elements among a pair of switching elements that form a pair by connecting the positive voltage side and negative voltage side terminals of the bridge circuit in series. The generated gate pulse signal and the short-circuit pulse signal are superimposed to generate a control signal, and the multiphase inverter unit is controlled by this control signal.

The gate pulse signal in the control signal converts the direct current into alternating current by controlling the pulse width of each switching element of the bridge circuit of the multiphase inverter. On the other hand, the short-circuit pulse signal in the control signal turns on at least one switching element of the pair of switching elements that form a pair by connecting the positive voltage side and negative voltage side terminals of the bridge circuit in series. The positive voltage side and the negative voltage side are short-circuited.

In the first to fourth forms of the intermittent short-circuit control described above, from the current source step-down chopper unit to the multi-phase inverter unit during the short-circuit operation between the positive voltage side and negative voltage side terminals of the bridge circuit by the short circuit pulse signal Current flow stops. Therefore, the short circuit current in the current source step-down chopper unit is performed without being affected by the orthogonal transformation operation by the multiphase inverter unit.

短絡 By short-circuit operation, a short-circuit current path is formed in the current source step-down chopper unit for a very short time width of the short-circuit pulse signal, and short-circuit current flows. The energy of the short circuit current is stored in the inductor in the current source step-down chopper circuit. The short-circuit operation is performed for each short time short-circuit pulse signal, and a plurality of short-circuit operations are performed by intermittently inputting a plurality of short-circuit pulse signals.

In the intermittent short-circuit operation, the current source step-down chopper unit is in conduction with the output terminal of the DC power supply until one short-circuit operation ends and the next short-circuit operation. Thereby, the energy stored in the inductor is sent to the output terminal of the DC power supply device to boost the output voltage. The energy conversion from current to voltage can be performed by the output capacitor on the output end side of the DC power supply device or the capacitance of the electrode capacity of the plasma generator.

The current flow from the current source step-down chopper unit to the output end side is performed by the current path that passes through each part of the multiphase inverter unit, transformer, and rectifier constituting the DC power supply device. It is possible to provide a current path that directly connects the two sides and use this current path. In the configuration in which the current is made to flow to the output end side using the directly connected current path, switching means for conducting in the ignition mode and in the non-conducting state in the normal operation mode is provided.

短絡 Short-circuit operation is performed based on each short-circuit pulse signal, and the short-circuit current is reset for each short-circuit operation. The output voltage is added to the voltage boosted in the previous short-circuit operation and boosted sequentially.

(Intermittent short circuit control by current source step-down chopper controller)
The intermittent short-circuit control of the present invention can be performed by the current source step-down chopper control unit in addition to the mode performed by the inverter control unit as described above.

In the mode of intermittent short-circuit control by the chopper control unit, a short-circuit switching element for short-circuiting between the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side is provided between the connection points of the current source step-down chopper unit and the multiphase inverter unit.

The intermittent short-circuit control by the current source step-down chopper controller of the present invention generates a short-circuit pulse signal that intermittently shorts the short-circuit switching element. The short-circuit pulse signal short-circuits the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the output terminal of the current source step-down chopper by turning on the short-circuit switching element.

On the other hand, the inverter control unit generates a gate pulse signal that controls the pulse width of the switching elements of the bridge circuit constituting the multiphase inverter. The gate pulse signal converts the direct current into an alternating current by controlling the pulse width of each switching element of the bridge circuit of the multiphase inverter.

In the control of intermittent short circuit between the current source step-down chopper unit and the multi-phase inverter unit, the current source step-down chopper unit is short-circuited at the current source step-down chopper unit side during short circuit operation between the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side. The current flow from the section to the multiphase inverter section is broken. Therefore, the formation of the short-circuit current of the current source step-down chopper unit is performed without being affected by the orthogonal transformation operation of the multiphase inverter unit.

By short-circuit operation, a current path is formed in the current source step-down chopper unit for a very short time width of the short-circuit pulse signal, and a short-circuit current flows. The energy of the short-circuit current is stored in the inductor in the current source step-down chopper. The stored short-circuit current energy boosts the output voltage of the DC power supply until the next short-circuit operation.

Even in the case of intermittent short-circuit control by the current source step-down chopper control unit, the current flow from the current source step-down chopper unit to the output end side is changed to each part of the multiphase inverter unit, transformer, and rectifier constituting the DC power supply device. In addition to the current path, the current source step-down chopper unit and the output end side can be directly connected.

The short-circuit current is reset for each short-circuit operation, and the output voltage is added to the voltage boosted in the previous short-circuit operation and boosted sequentially.

The control unit of the present invention includes a boost control for increasing the output voltage to the ignition set voltage by repeating boosting by a short circuit current a plurality of times in the ignition mode, and a constant voltage for maintaining the output voltage at the ignition set voltage by the chopper control unit. Switch between control and control. The switching from the boost control to the constant voltage control is performed when the output voltage reaches the ignition set voltage.

The output voltage rises to a predetermined ignition set voltage by boost control, and is maintained by constant voltage control after reaching the ignition set voltage. As a result, a voltage that is gradually increased in the ignition mode is applied to the plasma generator, and after reaching the ignition set voltage, the ignition set voltage is applied until the ignition mode ends.

The ignition mode can be switched to the steady operation mode based on the occurrence of plasma discharge in the plasma generator. In the steady operation mode, any one of constant voltage control, constant current control, and constant power control can be selected.

The constant voltage control is a control mode in which the set value of the steady operation is switched from the ignition set voltage set in the ignition mode to the steady operation set voltage, and the output voltage is maintained at the steady operation set voltage. The constant current control is a control mode in which the set value for steady operation is switched from the ignition set voltage set in the ignition mode to the steady operation set current, and the output current is maintained at the steady operation set current. The constant power control is a control mode in which the set value for the steady operation is switched from the ignition set voltage set in the ignition mode to the steady operation set power, and the output power is maintained at the steady operation set power.

In constant voltage control in the ignition mode, when the output current reaches the ignition set current and the output voltage drops to the plasma generation voltage, the ignition mode is switched to the steady operation mode. Any control selected from current control and constant power control is performed.

切り換え Switching from the ignition mode to the steady operation mode is based on the output current and output voltage. Normally, the occurrence of plasma discharge increases the output current, and the output voltage drops from the voltage at the time of ignition. By detecting the output voltage level and the output current level in the plasma generator from the DC power supply device, it is possible to detect the occurrence of plasma discharge and switch from the ignition mode to the steady operation mode.

[DC power supply control method]
The DC power supply device includes a current source step-down chopper unit that constitutes a DC source, a multi-phase inverter unit that converts the DC output of the current source step-down chopper unit into multi-phase AC power by operation of a plurality of switching elements, and a multi-phase inverter. A control unit having a rectifying unit that converts the output of the unit into an AC / DC converter and supplies the obtained direct current to the load, a chopper control unit that controls the current source step-down chopper unit, and an inverter control unit that controls the multiphase inverter unit And supply DC power to the plasma generator.

The control method of the DC power supply device of the present invention includes control modes of intermittent short-circuit control and switching control. The switching control is a control for switching between an ignition mode for supplying an ignition voltage for generating a plasma discharge in the plasma generator and a steady operation mode for supplying a steady operation current for continuing the plasma discharge of the plasma generator.

Intermittent short-circuit control is control in the ignition mode, and intermittently shorts the positive voltage side and negative voltage side of the current source step-down chopper unit or multiphase inverter unit to generate a short-circuit current flowing in the current source step-down chopper unit. . In the ignition mode, the output voltage of the DC power supply device is boosted using the generated short-circuit current to generate an ignition voltage. A plasma discharge is generated by applying this ignition voltage to the plasma generator.

Intermittent short-circuit control is achieved by short-circuiting the positive voltage side and negative voltage side of the bridge circuit by controlling the switching elements of the bridge circuit constituting the multi-phase inverter unit in the inverter control unit, and connecting to the multi-phase inverter unit by this short circuit. A short-circuit current is passed through the current-type step-down chopper.

The inverter control unit is configured to intermittently short-circuit the gate pulse signal for controlling the pulse width of the switching element of the bridge circuit constituting the multiphase inverter and the short-circuit pulse for intermittently short-circuiting the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the bridge circuit in the intermittent short-circuit control. The control signal is generated by superimposing the gate pulse signal and the short-circuit pulse signal. The control circuit controls the multi-phase inverter, and the short-circuit pulse signal connects the positive voltage side and negative voltage side terminals of the bridge circuit in series to simultaneously turn on the pair of switching elements, and the bridge circuit Short-circuit between the positive voltage side and negative voltage side terminals.

In the ignition mode, the control unit performs boost control for increasing the output voltage to the ignition set voltage by repeating boosting by a short circuit current a plurality of times, and constant voltage control for maintaining the output voltage at the ignition set voltage by the chopper control unit. Change over. Switching from the boost control to the constant voltage control is performed after the output voltage is increased by the boost control and the output voltage reaches the ignition set voltage.

The output voltage V _o can be controlled by the input voltage in the current source step-down chopper unit and the step-up ratio by step-up control. The input voltage in the current source step-down chopper unit can be controlled using the on-duty ratio of the chopper control of the chopper control unit as a parameter, and the step-up ratio can be controlled using the number of intermittent short-circuit controls as a parameter.

In the chopper control, the chopper controller controls the input voltage of the current source step-down chopper by the on-duty ratio, controls the boost ratio by the number of intermittent short-circuit controls, and increases the output voltage by these input voltage and boost ratio. Control.

The chopper controller performs constant voltage control in the ignition mode, and performs any control selected from constant voltage control, constant current control, and constant power control in the steady operation mode. In control selected from constant voltage control, constant current control, and constant power control, control is performed to maintain the voltage set value, current set value, or power set value, which are set values set in each control.

Constant voltage control performed by the ignition mode, the output voltage V _o is performs control so that the ignition set voltage, the input voltage of the current type step-down chopper unit performs a chopper control so that a predetermined voltage. In addition, the control performed in the steady operation mode is a control set value (voltage set value, current setting) in which the output is selected in the steady operation mode so that the plasma discharge is maintained after the plasma discharge is generated in the plasma generator. Value or power setting value).

The switching from the ignition set voltage to the set value set in the steady operation mode is performed based on the occurrence of plasma discharge in the plasma generator. Whether or not plasma discharge has occurred in the plasma generator can be determined by monitoring the output voltage and output current.

When plasma discharge occurs in the plasma generator, the output current supplied from the DC power supply to the plasma generator is switched from the ignition current to the steady operation current at the time of switching from the ignition mode to the steady operation mode.

Since the ignition current increases step by step every time an intermittent short circuit operation is performed, the ignition current becomes the largest ignition current at the final stage of switching from the ignition mode to the steady operation mode. Here, the ignition current when the ignition mode is switched to the steady operation mode is obtained in advance and set as the ignition setting current. Further, when plasma discharge occurs, the output voltage becomes lower than the ignition set voltage, so a low voltage when plasma discharge occurs is determined as the plasma generation voltage.

When detecting the occurrence of plasma discharge, the output current is compared with the ignition set current, the output voltage is compared with the plasma generation voltage, and when the output current reaches the ignition set current and the output voltage drops to the plasma generation voltage, the plasma discharge Judgment is made when this occurs.

When the occurrence of plasma discharge is detected, the control set value is selected from the ignition set voltage of the constant voltage control in the ignition mode, and from the constant voltage control, constant current control, and constant power control in the steady operation mode. Switch to the control setting value and perform the selected control.

In the steady operation mode, a constant voltage, a constant current, or a constant power is applied to the plasma generator by constant voltage control, constant current control, or constant power control, and a stable plasma discharge is maintained.

As described above, according to the present invention, in the DC power supply apparatus that supplies DC power to the plasma generator, the apparatus configuration for forming a high voltage that generates plasma discharge can be simplified and miniaturized.

Also, the voltage application time required for generating plasma discharge can be shortened without using a large-scale and complicated DC power supply device.

It is a figure for demonstrating the generation | occurrence | production operation | movement of a short circuit current, and the step-up operation of the output voltage by a short circuit current of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the whole structure of the DC power supply device of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the structural example of the chopper control part with which the DC power supply device of this invention is provided. It is a figure for demonstrating the structural example of the inverter control part with which the DC power supply device of this invention is provided. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the operation example of the ignition mode and steady operation mode of the direct-current power supply device of this invention. It is a timing chart for demonstrating the operation example of the ignition mode and steady operation mode of the direct-current power supply device of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the circuit state at the time of the ignition of the direct-current power supply device of this invention. It is an operation state diagram of the ignition mode and the steady operation mode of the DC power supply device of the present invention. It is a timing chart for demonstrating the other structural example 1 of a DC power supply device. It is a timing chart for demonstrating the other structural example 2 of a DC power supply device. It is a block diagram for demonstrating the other structural example 3 of a DC power supply device. It is a figure for demonstrating the example of the conventional circuit which generates the ignition voltage for plasma discharge generation | occurrence | production.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the following, with respect to the DC power supply device and control method of the present invention, a configuration example of the DC power supply device will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 4, and a control example of the DC power supply device will be described with reference to FIGS. Further, another configuration example of the DC power supply device of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

[Configuration example of DC power supply]
First, a configuration example of the DC power supply device of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 is a diagram for explaining the overall configuration of the DC power supply device of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining a configuration example of a chopper control unit provided in the DC power supply device of the present invention. These are the figures for demonstrating the structural example of the inverter control part with which the DC power supply device of this invention is provided.

The DC power supply device 1 of the present invention shown in FIG. 2 is input from the rectifying unit 10 that rectifies the AC power of the AC power source 2, the snubber unit 20 that forms a protection circuit that suppresses transiently high voltage, and the rectifying unit 10. A current source step-down chopper unit 30 that converts a DC power voltage into a predetermined voltage and outputs a DC current, a multi-phase inverter unit 40 that converts a DC output of the current source step-down chopper unit 30 into a multi-phase AC output, and a multi-phase inverter A multiphase transformer 50 that converts the AC output of the unit 40 into a predetermined voltage, and a multiphase rectifier 60 that converts the AC of the multiphase transformer 50 into DC.

Current-step-down chopper 30, and a DC reactor _{L F1} and switching element _{Q 1,} a diode _{D 1.} The switching element Q ₁ is, steps down by chopper controlling the DC voltage rectified by the rectifier unit 10. Voltage control by the current-step-down chopper unit 30 is performed by controlling the ON duty ratio is the ratio of the on-off switching element Q _1.

The direct current reactor L _F1 smoothes the current of the chopper controlled direct current. The DC power supply device of the present invention causes a short-circuit current to flow through the current source step-down chopper unit 30 by a short-circuit operation, and temporarily stores this short-circuit current in the DC reactor L _F1 . The stored energy of DC reactor L _F1 boosts the output voltage until the next short-circuit operation.

The multi-phase inverter unit 40 receives the direct current smoothed by the current source step-down chopper unit 30 and performs orthogonal transformation by controlling the switching elements of the bridge circuit included in the multi-phase inverter unit 40.

The multi-phase inverter unit 40 includes a multi-phase inverter circuit configured by bridge-connecting switching elements corresponding to the number of phases. For example, in the case of three phases, the three-phase inverter circuit includes a bridge circuit composed of six switching elements. As the switching element, for example, a semiconductor switching element such as an IGBT or a MOSFET can be used. Each switching element of the multiphase inverter circuit performs a switching operation based on the control signal of the inverter control unit 80, converts DC power into AC power, and outputs the AC power.

The AC output of the multi-phase inverter unit 40 can obtain a high frequency output by increasing the switching frequency of the switching element. When the plasma generator is used as a load unit, the current source inverter device supplies a high frequency output of 200 kHz, for example, to the load unit. In order to output a high frequency, the multiphase inverter circuit performs switching operation of the switching element at a high frequency. As described above, when the switching element is switched at a high frequency, the AC output includes a high frequency ripple component.

The multiphase rectification unit 60 rectifies the AC output of the multiphase inverter unit 40 and supplies the DC output to the load. A conventionally known multiphase rectification unit may be configured to include a DC filter circuit in the output unit. This DC filter circuit removes the high-frequency ripple component contained in the AC output of the multiphase inverter unit. DC filter circuit can be configured by the output capacitor C _FO connected in series with the output reactor L _FO in parallel connected to the output terminal _(not shown).

The DC output of the multiphase rectification unit 60 is output via the wiring inductance L ₀ provided in the wiring 90, and is supplied to the plasma generator 4 by the output cable 3 connecting the DC power supply device 1 and the plasma generator 4. .

The DC power supply device 1 of the present invention can use parasitic impedance instead of the DC filter circuit in the multiphase rectifier 60 as a configuration for removing the high-frequency ripple component. For example, the inductance L ₀ of the wiring 90 between the polyphase rectifier 60 and the output terminal is used as the inductance, and the capacity of the output cable 3 connected between the DC power supply device 1 and the load is used as the capacity, or In the case of a plasma load, the output capacity _Co of the plasma generator 4 can be used. The above-described parasitic impedance of the multiphase inverter section and the capacity of the output cable and electrode capacitance substantially constitute a DC filter circuit, and reduce high frequency ripple components included in the AC output of the multiphase inverter section.

Instead of the series filter circuits, the configuration using the parasitic impedance of the electrode capacitance of the wiring impedance and output cables and a plasma generating apparatus, is large enough to supply the capacitive component is arc energy P _c corresponding to the output capacitor C _FO , The high-frequency ripple component can be removed and the arc energy _Pc can be supplied.

Moreover, the high frequency ripple component has a characteristic that increases when the driving frequency of the multiphase inverter circuit is lowered. Therefore, by increasing the driving frequency of the polyphase inverter circuit, the need for output capacitors C _FO and output reactor (inductance) L _FO can be reduced. Moreover, the energy which DC power supply device 1 holds inside can be suppressed by raising the drive frequency of a multiphase inverter circuit.

Furthermore, the DC power supply device 1 of the present invention includes a chopper control unit 70 that controls the current source step-down chopper unit 30 and an inverter control unit 80 that controls the multiphase inverter unit 40.

Chopper control unit 70 is a circuit for chopper control of the switching element to Q ₁ current-step-down chopper 30, the chopper current is an output current of the switching element Q _1, and detects an output voltage of the DC power supply device 1, the Based on the detected value of the chopper current and the output voltage, control is performed so that the output of the current source step-down chopper unit 30 becomes a predetermined current value and a predetermined voltage value set in advance.

The inverter control unit 80 controls the switching operation of the switching element connected to each arm constituting the bridge circuit of the multiphase inverter unit 40. The multiphase inverter unit 40 orthogonally converts the input direct current into alternating current by controlling the switching element.

In the case of a three-phase inverter, for example, the multiphase inverter unit 40 is configured by a bridge circuit having six arms as shown in FIG. Each arm is provided with six switching elements Q _R , Q _S , Q _T , Q _X , Q _Y , and Q _Z. A switching element Q _R and the switching element Q _x connected in series, a switching element Q _S and the switching element Q _Y are connected in series, connected in series and a switching element Q _T and the switching element Q _z.

The connection point _R between the switching element Q _R and the switching element Q _x is connected as the R phase of the three-phase transformer 51, and the connection point S between the switching element Q _S and the switching element Q _Y is the S phase of the three-phase transformer 51. The connection point _T between the switching element Q _T and the switching element Q _Z is connected as the T phase of the three-phase transformer 51.

ＰＷＭ PWM control that changes the magnitude of output current under constant input current is known as control of the multiphase inverter. In PWM control, a pulse control signal is formed for each phase by comparing a carrier wave and a modulated wave. In the case of a three-phase inverter, the pulse control signal of each phase has a conduction period of 120 °, and the ON / OFF of the switching element of each arm of the inverter is controlled by this pulse control signal. R-phase, S-phase, and T-phase currents having a phase difference are formed.

A feedback signal is fed back to the chopper control unit 70 and the inverter control unit 80 from the output end of the DC power supply device 1 or the load side. The feedback signal can be, for example, the voltage or current at the output end of the DC power supply device 1.

Next, a configuration example of the chopper controller 70 will be described with reference to FIG.
The chopper controller 70 performs pulse voltage control on the switching element of the current source step-down chopper 30, performs constant voltage control in the ignition mode, and selects one of constant voltage control, constant current control, or constant power control in the steady operation mode. Control. Control is performed by switching to different set values in the ignition mode and the steady operation mode. In the ignition mode, the ignition set voltage V _IGR is set. In the steady operation mode, the constant voltage control is set to the steady operation set voltage V _R , the constant current control is set to the steady operation set current I _R , and the constant power control is set to the steady state. set the operating set power P _R.

Setting values in each control the steady operation mode from the ignition setting voltage V _IGR (constant voltage control of the steady-state operation setting voltage V _R, the constant steady operation of the current control set current I _R, the steady operation set power P _R of the constant power control) to The switching can be performed by detecting that the output voltage and the output current have reached predetermined values. For example, when the set value is switched by detecting the output voltage and output current, the output current increases in the ignition mode, reaches the ignition set current set corresponding to the start of plasma discharge, and the output voltage is plasma. The time point when the voltage drops to the generated voltage is detected, and the set value is switched at this time point. FIG. 3 shows the control set values (the steady operation set voltage V _R , the steady operation set current I _R , the steady operation set power P, and the ignition set voltage V _IGR selected based on the detection of the output voltage V _o and the output current I _o. _R ).

The chopper control unit 70 compares the output current I _o and the ignition set current I _IGR as a configuration for switching the set value based on the comparison between the output current and output voltage and each set value, and generates the output voltage V _o and plasma generation. compares the set voltage V _PLR, the output current I _o is the ignition setting current I _IGR above, and a comparison circuit 70e for outputting a switching signal when the output voltage V _o is equal to or less than the plasma generating set voltage V _PLR Prepare. The ignition set current I _IGR can be stored in the memory means 70f, and the plasma generation set voltage V _PLR can be stored in the memory means 70g.

Instead of the plasma generation setting voltage V _PLR , the ignition setting voltage V _IGR and a constant k may be stored, and the plasma generation setting voltage V _PLR may be set by multiplying the ignition setting voltage V _IGR by the constant k. The constant k can be arbitrarily set in the range of 0.2 to 0.9, for example.

Chopper control unit 70, in the pulse width control of the switching element Q _1, the set value of the control, the ignition setting voltage V _IGR performing constant voltage control in the ignition mode, the set value of the control selected in the steady operation mode (constant voltage There is provided a switching circuit 70b for switching to a steady operation set voltage V _R for control, a steady operation set current I _R for constant current control, and a steady operation set power P _{R for} constant power control.

Switching circuit 70b outputs an ignition setting voltage V _IGR, steady operation setting voltage V _R, the steady operation set current I _R, one of steady operation set power P _R based on the switching signal outputted from the comparison circuit 70e. Ignition set voltage V _IGR it can be stored in the memory means 70c, steady operation setting voltage V _R, the steady operation set current I _R, steady operation setting values such as steady operation set power P _R is stored in the memory unit 70d Can do. Each of the memories 70c to 70g is not limited to the configuration provided in the chopper control unit 70. For example, the memories 70c to 70g may be provided in an arbitrary component such as a control unit that controls the entire DC power supply device, or may be input from outside the DC power supply device It is good.

The chopper control unit 70 includes a switching element control signal generation circuit 70a, and performs switching control of constant voltage control, constant current control, or constant power control by pulse width control so that the output becomes a set value. Is generated. Switching element control signal generator circuit 70a includes a switching ignition set voltage V _IGR sent from the switching circuit 70b, the steady operation setting voltage V _R, the steady operation set current I _R, one of steady operation set power P _R as a set value generates a device control signal to the chopper controls the switching element to Q ₁ current-step-down chopper unit 30.

Next, a configuration example of the inverter control unit 80 will be described with reference to FIG.
The inverter control unit 80 controls the on / off operation of the switching element of the multiphase inverter unit 40, and performs the orthogonal conversion from DC to AC and generates a short-circuit current in the current source step-down chopper unit.

Control of orthogonal transformation from direct current to alternating current is performed by the gate pulse signal G, and intermittent short circuit control is performed by the short circuit pulse signal Pi. The gate pulse signal G is generated in any of the ignition mode and the steady operation mode. On the other hand, the generation of the short-circuit pulse signal P _i is started at the rising edge of the ignition signal IG, and the generation is stopped by the switching signal that is the output of the comparison circuit 70e of the chopper control unit 70.

The inverter control unit 80 adds the gate pulse signal generation circuit 80c that generates the gate pulse signal G, the short circuit pulse signal generation circuit 80d that generates the short circuit pulse signal P _i , and the gate pulse signal G and the short circuit pulse signal P _i. An adder circuit 80b for generating a control signal and a control signal output unit 80a for outputting the control signal to the multiphase inverter unit 40.

The multi-phase inverter unit 40 performs orthogonal transformation by the gate pulse signal G in the control signal, and short-circuits the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side by the short-circuit pulse signal P _i in the control signal. Apply short circuit current.

[Operation example of DC power supply]
Next, regarding the operation example of the ignition mode and steady operation mode of the DC power supply device of the present invention, the flowchart of FIG. 5, the timing chart of FIG. 6, the circuit state at the time of ignition of FIG. 7, and the ignition mode and steady operation of FIG. The operation will be described with reference to a mode operation state diagram. In the following, select the constant voltage control as the normal operation mode, the case where the set value of the steady operation setting voltage V _R.

When DC power is supplied from the DC power supply device to the plasma generator and plasma processing is performed in the plasma generator, plasma discharge is generated by the ignition mode S1 when the power is turned on or restarted, and after the plasma discharge occurs, steady operation Plasma discharge is maintained by mode S2.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example in which the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the multiphase inverter unit are short-circuited by inverter control, and a short-circuit current is caused to flow through the current source step-down chopper unit by this short-circuit operation.

First, the ignition mode S1 will be described.
The chopper controller controls the IG voltage rise interval (S1a to S1c) that boosts the output voltage to the ignition set voltage, and the IG voltage constant voltage interval control (S1d to S1f) that maintains the boosted output voltage at the ignition set voltage The ignition mode is controlled by these two sections. On the other hand, the inverter control unit performs inverter control by the gate pulse signal G and intermittent short-circuit control by the short-circuit pulse signal P _i during the ignition mode S1.

(Control of IG voltage rise section)
In the IG voltage rising section, control is performed to boost the output voltage to the ignition set voltage. In the inverter control, a gate pulse signal G for driving and controlling the switching elements of each phase of the bridge circuit included in the multi-phase inverter unit is generated (S1A), and an ignition (IG) generation signal that determines an ignition mode section is started (S1B). ). A short-circuit pulse signal P _i is generated in accordance with the rise of the ignition (IG) generation signal (S1C).

6 (a) shows an ignition (IG) generating signals, and FIG. 6 (b) shows a gate pulse signal G, FIG. 6 (c) shows a short circuit pulse signal P _i. FIG. 6B shows a state in which the short-circuit pulse signal P _i is superimposed on the gate pulse signal G.

The multi-phase inverter unit is controlled by the gate pulse signal G generated by S1A (S1D), and the ignition (IG) generation signal generated by S1C is used between the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the multi-phase inverter unit (bridge circuit Short the upper and lower ends (S1E).

The short-circuit pulse signal P _i is generated for a minute time width T _{ion, and} together with the gate pulse signal G, the switching elements constituting the bridge circuit of the inverter unit are turned on to short-circuit the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side. For example, by the short pulse signal P _i superimposed on the gate pulse signal G _R and the gate pulse signal G _X, an ON state and the switching element Q _R and the switching element Q _X of the bridge circuit, to short-circuit the upper and lower ends of the bridge circuit .

On the other hand, the chopper controller sets the ignition set voltage V _IGR as a voltage set value for constant voltage control of the output voltage V _o with the rise of the ignition (IG) generation signal (S1a).

FIG. 6D shows the output voltage V _o and the output current I _o . The output voltage V _o, shows an ignition setting voltage V _IGR as the voltage setting value of the constant voltage control of the ignition mode the output voltage V _o, as the voltage set value of the constant voltage control during the steady operation of the output voltage V _o It shows a steady operation setting voltage V _R. Further, for the output current _Io , an ignition set current _IIGR is shown as a current set value in the ignition mode of the output current _Io .

The short circuit current Δi flows through the current source step-down chopper by the S1E short circuit operation process. This short-circuit current Δi is accumulated in an inductor provided in the current source step-down chopper (S1b).

Short pulse signals P _i stops short operation by the fall of the output voltage V _o by the energy stored in the inductor is boosted (S1F).

The output voltage V _o is compared with the ignition set voltage V _IGR, and if the output voltage V _o has not reached the ignition set voltage V _IGR , the next short-circuit pulse signal P _i causes the negative voltage on the positive side of the multiphase inverter section to be negative to short-circuit between the (upper and lower ends of the bridge circuit) between the voltage side, it performs processing for boosting the output voltage V _o by the short circuit current Δi a (S1E ~ S1F). Until the output voltage V _o reaches the ignition set voltage V _IGR , the step-up process by the short-circuit operation of S1E to S1F is repeated.

The output voltage V _o is stepped up stepwise by an intermittent short circuit operation by repeating S1E to S1F. In the output voltage V _o shown in FIG. 6, a portion indicated by a symbol A indicates a step-up state in which the voltage goes toward the ignition set voltage V _IGR .

Hereinafter, the boosting operation by the short circuit current will be described.
FIG. 7 shows a short circuit state at the time of ignition. In FIG. 7, in the bridge circuit of the three-phase inverter, the switching element Q _R and the switching element Q _X are simultaneously turned on to short-circuit between the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side (upper and lower ends of the bridge circuit). Is shown.

When the switching element Q _R is in the on state by the gate pulse signal G _R , the switching element Q _X is turned on by the short circuit pulse signal P _i at any time in the on state. As a result, the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side PN (upper and lower ends of the bridge circuit) are short-circuited via the switching element Q _R and the switching element Q _X.

Due to the short circuit, a short circuit current Δi flows through the current source step-down chopper as shown in FIG. The short-circuit current Δi flows for a minute time width T _{ion (n) that is} the signal width of the short-circuit pulse signal P _i . The short circuit current Δi is reset every short circuit operation.

Energy J _{i (n)} due to the short-circuit current Δi is accumulated in the DC reactor L _F1 of the current source step-down chopper unit. When the input voltage to the DC reactor L _F1 is V _in , the short-circuit current Δi ₁ and the energy J _{i (n) for} _one short time width T _{ion (n)} and the short-circuit current Δi ₁ are expressed by the following equation (1), It is represented by (2).
Δi ₁ = (V _in / L _F1 ) × T _{ion (n)} (1)
J _{i (n)} = (1/2) × L _F1 × Δi ₁ ² (2)

n-th short operation of T _{ion (n)} is completed, until the short circuit operation of the next (n + 1) th T _{ion (n + 1)} is started, the direct current by a short operation of the T _{ion (n)} reactor L _The energy J _{i (n)} stored in _F1 is supplied to the load through the inverter unit, the transformer, and the rectifier.

Here, the energy J _{i (n)} sent to the output-side capacitance C _OT by the short-circuit operation when the output-side capacitance of the DC power supply device is C _OT and the output voltage at the time of ignition is V _o _(n). Is represented by the following formula (3). Note that the output side capacitance C _OT can be the output capacitance C _FO and the electrode capacitance C _o of the plasma generator as a load.
J _{i (n)} = (1/2) × L _F1 × Δi ₁ ²
= (1/2) × C _OT × (V _{o (n)} ² −V _{o (n−1)} ² ) (3)
However, the output voltage before the first short-circuit operation is set to V _{0 (0)} = 0.

From the expression (3), the output voltage V _{o (n)} at the time of ignition is expressed by the following expression (4).
V _{o (n)} = {(L _F1 / C _OT ) × Δi ₁ ² + V _{o (n−1)} ² } ^1/2 (4)
Equation (4) represents the output voltage V _{o (n)} when the short-circuit operation is repeated n times.

When the short-circuit operation is performed three times (n = 3), the output voltage at each short-circuit operation is expressed by the following equation.
V _{o (1)} = {(L _F1 / C _OT ) × Δi ₁ ² } ^1/2 (5)
V _{o (2)} = {(L _F1 / C _OT ) × Δi ₁ ² + V _{o (1)} ² } ^1/2 (6)
V _{o (3)} = {(L _F1 / C _OT ) × Δi ₁ ² + V _{o (2)} ² } ^1/2 (7)

Equation (4) shows that the output voltage V _{o (n)} at the time of ignition can be selected by the number n of short-circuit operations.

Moreover, short-circuit current .DELTA.i ₁ is proportional to the input voltage V _in as shown in equation (1). Input voltage V _in is the output voltage of the current-step-down chopper unit, the output voltage is determined by the on-duty ratio of the switching element to Q ₁ current-step-down chopper unit.

Accordingly, the step-up ratio of the output voltage V _{o (n)} can be determined by the on-duty ratio of the switching element to Q ₁ number n, and the current-step-down chopper of the short-circuit operation.

Since the number n of the short-circuit operation is performed in the ignition mode, when the short-circuit pulse signal is output in synchronization with the gate pulse signal, the time until the ignition mode is started and released and the gate pulse signal The number of times is automatically determined according to the time width.

(Control of IG voltage constant voltage section)
In the IG voltage constant voltage section, control is performed to maintain the boosted output voltage at the ignition set voltage.

When the output voltage V _o reaches the ignition set voltage V _IGR (S1c), in the ignition mode of chopper control, the control from the IG voltage rising section (S1a to S1c) to the control from the IG voltage constant voltage section (S1d to S1f) ) To maintain the boosted output voltage at the ignition set voltage. In the output voltage V _o shown in FIG. 6, a portion indicated by a symbol B indicates a constant voltage state maintained at the ignition set voltage V _IGR .

In the control of the IG voltage constant voltage section, constant voltage control is performed with the ignition set voltage in chopper control (S1d). The output current _Io rises in the IG voltage rising section and the IG voltage constant voltage section. In the output current I _o shown in FIG. 6, a portion indicated by a symbol D indicates a current rising state in the IG voltage rising section and the IG voltage constant voltage section.

In the plasma generating apparatus and plasma discharge is generated in the output current I _o flows ignition set current I _IGR, flows an output current I _o of the steady operation by moving to a steady operating state. In the output current I _o shown in FIG. 6, the portion indicated by the symbol E indicates the state of transition to the output current I _{o in the} steady operation where the output current I _o exceeding the ignition set current I _IGR flows, and the portion indicated by the symbol F It shows the output current I _o of the steady-state operation.

Therefore, the occurrence of plasma discharge can be determined by the fact that the output voltage V _o has reached the steady operation set voltage V _R and that the ignition set current I _IGR flows in the output current I _o .

When the generation of plasma discharge in the plasma generator is determined by whether or not the output voltage V _o and the output current I _o have reached a predetermined voltage and a predetermined current, the output current that flows when the plasma discharge occurs is determined as the ignition set current I. _{Predetermined} as _IGR , the output voltage is predetermined as the ignition set voltage V _IGR , the output current I _o is compared with the set ignition set current I _IGR, and the output voltage V _o is set as a constant to the set ignition set voltage V _IGR A plasma generation set voltage V _PLR obtained by multiplying k is compared. The constant k is set to, for example, 0.2 to 0.9 (S1e, S1f).

When the output current I _o reaches the ignition set current I _IGR (S1e) and the output voltage V _o falls below the plasma generation set voltage V _PLR obtained by multiplying the ignition set voltage V _IGR by a constant k (S1f) In the chopper control unit, the set value of the output voltage V _o of constant voltage control is changed from the ignition set voltage V _IGR to the steady operation set voltage V _R (S1g), and in the inverter control unit, the ignition (IG) generation signal the deactivation (S1G), to stop the generation of the short pulse signals P _i (S1H).

In the chopper controller, the constant voltage control set voltage is switched from the ignition set voltage V _IGR to the steady operation set voltage V _R , and in the inverter controller, the IG generation signal is stopped and the generation of the short-circuit pulse signal P _i is stopped. As a result, the ignition mode is terminated and the operation mode is switched to the steady operation mode. In the output voltage V _o shown in FIG. 6, a portion indicated by a symbol C indicates a constant voltage state maintained at the steady operation set voltage V _R.

End of IG-voltage constant voltage section is performed by stopping the short pulse signal P _i.

In the above example, the control of the off-state, when the boosted output voltage reaches the ignition set voltage can be performed by constant voltage control to the ignition setting voltage switching element Q ₁ by a pulse width control .

Next, in the steady operation mode S2, the plasma discharge generated in the ignition mode is maintained. To maintain the plasma discharge, the chopper control unit performs the constant voltage control in the steady operation setting voltage V _R, the inverter control unit performs a normal pulse width control.

FIG. 8 shows operating states of chopper control and inverter control in the ignition mode and the steady operation mode.

In the ignition mode, the chopper control controls the current source step-down chopper so that the output voltage V _o can be controlled to the ignition set voltage by pulse width control, and the inverter control performs orthogonal transform control by pulse width control.

In the inverter control, intermittent short-circuit control is performed in the IG voltage rising section in the ignition mode, and the ignition voltage is boosted toward the ignition set voltage V _IGR . This step-up control can be performed not only by intermittent short-circuit control by inverter control but also by controlling a short-circuit switching element provided on the current source step-down chopper unit side.

In the ignition mode, the output voltage is boosted towards the ignition setting voltage V _IGR in IG voltage rising period, after reaching the ignition set voltage V _IGR is maintained in IG voltage constant voltage section to the ignition setting voltage V _IGR.

In the ignition mode, the output current rises toward the ignition setting current I _IGR .

When the output current reaches the ignition set current I _IGR and the output voltage drops _{below the} value (k · V _IGR ) that is obtained by multiplying the ignition set voltage V _IGR by a constant k (k = 0.2 to 0.9) It is determined that a plasma discharge is generated (plasma ignition), and the ignition mode is switched to the steady operation mode. The switching from the ignition mode to the steady operation mode switches the constant voltage control set voltage in the chopper control from the ignition set voltage V _IGR to the steady operation set voltage V _R.

In the steady operation mode, when one of constant voltage control, constant current control, and constant power control is selected, after determining the occurrence of plasma discharge, the operation is switched to the steady operation by the selected control. At this time, the output current reaches the ignition set current I _IGR and then becomes the output current I _o during steady operation.

[Other configuration examples of DC power supply]
Next, another configuration example of the DC power supply device will be described.

(Other configuration example 1 of a DC power supply device)
FIG. 9 is a timing chart for explaining another configuration example 1 of the DC power supply device. The short-circuit pulse signal P _{i in} the configuration example 1 simultaneously turns on all the switching elements of the bridge circuit. By the simultaneous ON state all the switching elements of the bridge circuit by using the short pulse signal P _i, regardless of the ON state and OFF state of the switching elements of the bridge circuit, it is possible to perform the short-circuit operation.

The timing chart shown in FIG. 9 is the same as the timing chart shown in FIG. 6 except for the short-circuit pulse signal. FIG. 9B shows the short-circuit pulse signal P _i and the gate pulse signal G superimposed on each other, and the short-circuit pulse signal P _i is shown by a black background pattern. The short-circuit pulse signal P _i simultaneously turns on and off each switching element Q _R , Q _S , Q _T , Q _X , Q _y , Q _z of the bridge circuit. Even when the short-circuit pulse signal _Pi and the gate pulse signal G overlap, the switching element is turned on, so that the short-circuit state can be achieved regardless of the state of the gate pulse signal G.

(Other configuration example 2 of the DC power supply device)
FIG. 10 is a timing chart for explaining another configuration example 2 of the DC power supply device. The short-circuit pulse signal P _i of the configuration example 2 is at least among switching element pairs that form a pair by connecting the positive voltage side and negative voltage side terminals of the bridge circuit in series among the switching elements included in the bridge circuit. One pair of switching elements is simultaneously turned on.

By simultaneously turned on the switching element for at least one pair of the pair of switching elements of the upper and lower ends of the bridge circuit by using the short pulse signal P _i, regardless of the ON state and OFF state of the switching elements of the bridge circuit, Short circuit operation can be performed.

The timing chart shown in FIG. 10 is the same as the timing chart shown in FIG. 6 except for the short-circuit pulse signal. FIG. 10B shows the short circuit pulse signal P _i and the gate pulse signal G in an overlapping manner, and the short circuit pulse signal P _i is shown by a black background pattern. The short-circuit pulse signal P _i simultaneously turns on and off the switching elements Q _R and Q _X of the bridge circuit. Even when the short-circuit pulse signal _Pi and the gate pulse signal G overlap, the switching element is turned on, so that the short-circuit state can be achieved regardless of the state of the gate pulse signal G.

(Other configuration example 3 of the DC power supply device)
In the configuration example 3, the pair of the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the bridge circuit is connected in series at any time point within the time width of the gate pulse signal that turns on each switching element. Among the switching elements, a pulse signal that turns on a switching element that is paired with a switching element that is turned on by a gate pulse signal is generated as a short-circuit pulse signal, and the paired switching elements are simultaneously turned on, Cause a short-circuit operation.

In the form of the short-circuit operation described above, the short-circuit operation is performed by simultaneously turning on the switching elements at the upper and lower ends of the multiphase inverter section. On the other hand, in the configuration example 4, the switching element Q ₂ is connected between the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the output terminal of the current source step-down chopper section or the input terminal of the multiphase inverter section, and this switching element Q _2. To cause a short circuit.

(Other configuration example 4 of the DC power supply device)
FIG. 11 is a configuration diagram for explaining another configuration example 4 of the DC power supply device. Configuration Example 4, the DC power supply apparatus shown in FIG. 1, to connect the switching element Q ₂ between the positive voltage side and a negative voltage side output terminal of the current-step-down chopper unit 30, the switching element Q ₂ The switching control unit 91 controls the on / off operation.

According to this configuration example 4, without controlling the plurality of switching elements included in the bridge circuit of the multiphase inverter, by controlling the one switching element Q ₂ can perform short-circuit operation.

In the steady operation mode, the selection from constant voltage control, constant current control, and constant power control can be made as required. For example, it is selected in advance and set in the switching circuit of the chopper controller. It can be set from outside the DC power supply. Moreover, it is good also as a structure which changes selection.

Note that the descriptions in the above embodiments and modifications are examples of the DC power supply device and the control method of the DC power supply device according to the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to each embodiment, and Various modifications can be made based on the gist, and these are not excluded from the scope of the present invention.

The current source inverter device of the present invention can be applied as a power source for supplying power to a plasma generator and performing film formation or etching.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 DC power supply device 2 AC power supply 3 Output cable 4 Plasma generator 10 Rectification part 20 Snubber part 30 Current type step-down chopper part 40 Multiphase inverter part 50 Multiphase transformation part 51 Phase transformer 60 Multiphase rectification part 70 Chopper control part 70a Switching element control signal generation circuit 70b Switching circuit 70c Memory means (ignition setting value)
70d Memory means (set voltage for steady operation)
70e comparison circuit 70f memory means (ignition setting current)
70g Memory means (Plasma generation set voltage)
80 Inverter control unit 80a Control signal output unit 80b Adder circuit 80c Gate pulse signal generation circuit 80d Short-circuit pulse signal generation circuit 90 Wiring 91 Switching control unit 92 Switching control unit I _IGR ignition setting current _Io Output current I _R Steady state operation setting current P _R Normal operation setting power V _IGR Ignition setting voltage V _in Input voltage V _o Output voltage V _PLR Plasma generation setting voltage V _R Normal operation setting voltage Δi Short circuit current

Claims

In a DC power supply that supplies DC power to a plasma generator,
A current source step-down chopper that constitutes a DC source;
A multi-phase inverter unit that converts the DC output of the current source step-down chopper unit into multi-phase AC power by operation of a plurality of switching elements;
A rectification unit that converts the output of the multiphase inverter unit into AC / DC and supplies the obtained direct current to a load, a chopper control unit that controls the current source step-down chopper unit, and an inverter control unit that controls the multiphase inverter unit And a control unit having
The control unit controls switching between an ignition mode for supplying an ignition voltage for generating plasma discharge to the plasma generator and a steady operation mode for continuing plasma discharge of the plasma generator controlled by the chopper controller. ,and,
Performing intermittent short-circuit control for intermittently short-circuiting between the positive voltage side and negative voltage side of the current source step-down chopper unit or between the positive voltage side and negative voltage side of the multiphase inverter unit,
In the ignition mode, the control unit controls a boost operation by a short-circuit current flowing in the current source step-down chopper unit by the intermittent short-circuit control, and controls an output voltage applied to the plasma generator. Power supply.
The control unit performs the intermittent short circuit control by the inverter control unit,
In the intermittent short circuit control, the inverter control unit,
A gate pulse signal for controlling the pulse width of the switching element of the bridge circuit constituting the multiphase inverter, and a short-circuit pulse signal for intermittently short-circuiting the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the bridge circuit,
Control the multi-phase inverter unit by a control signal in which the gate pulse signal and the short-circuit pulse signal are superimposed,
A pair of switching elements that are connected in series between the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the bridge circuit by the short-circuit pulse signal are simultaneously turned on, and the positive voltage side and negative voltage side terminals of the bridge circuit The DC power supply device according to claim 1, wherein a short circuit is provided between them.
The inverter control unit
A pair of switching elements that form a pair by connecting the terminals of the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the bridge circuit in series at any point within the time width of the gate pulse signal that turns on each of the switching elements. Among them, a pulse signal for turning on a switching element that is paired with a switching element that is turned on by a gate pulse signal is generated as the short circuit pulse signal,
3. The positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the bridge circuit are short-circuited by a switching element that is turned on by the gate pulse signal and a switching element that is turned on by the short-circuit pulse signal. The direct current power supply device described.
The inverter control unit generates a pulse signal that simultaneously turns on all the switching elements of the bridge circuit as the short-circuit pulse signal,
The DC power supply device according to claim 2, wherein all the switching elements of the bridge circuit are turned on by the short-circuit pulse signal, and the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the bridge circuit are short-circuited.
The inverter control unit includes at least one of a pair of switching elements that form a pair by connecting the terminals on the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the bridge circuit in series among the switching elements included in the bridge circuit. A pulse signal for simultaneously turning on the switching elements is generated as the short-circuit pulse signal,
The short-circuit pulse signal turns on at least one pair of switching elements of the pair of switching elements connected in series between the positive voltage side and negative voltage side terminals of the bridge circuit, and the positive voltage side of the bridge circuit The DC power supply device according to claim 2, wherein the negative voltage side is short-circuited.
Between the current source step-down chopper part and the multiphase inverter part, a short-circuit switching element is provided between the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side,
The control unit performs the intermittent short circuit control by the chopper control unit,
The chopper control unit generates a short-circuit pulse signal that intermittently short-circuits the short-circuit switching element,
2. The direct current according to claim 1, wherein the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the output terminal of the current source step-down chopper unit are short-circuited by turning on the short-circuit switching element by the short-circuit pulse signal. Power supply.
In the ignition mode, the control unit repeats boosting by a short circuit current a plurality of times to increase the output voltage to the ignition set voltage, and the constant voltage that maintains the output voltage at the ignition set voltage by the chopper control unit. Switch between control and
7. The DC power supply device according to claim 1, wherein after the output voltage reaches an ignition set voltage, switching from step-up control to constant voltage control is performed.
The control unit uses the chopper control on-duty ratio of the chopper control unit and the number of intermittent short-circuit controls as parameters,
Control the input voltage of the current source step-down chopper by the on-duty ratio,
Control the boost ratio by the number of intermittent short-circuit control,
8. The DC power supply device according to claim 7, wherein a voltage increase of the output voltage is controlled by the input voltage and the boost ratio.
The steady operation mode is:
Constant voltage control that maintains the output voltage at the steady operation set voltage by switching the set value for steady operation from the ignition set voltage set in the ignition mode to the steady operation set voltage,
Constant current control that switches the set value for steady operation from the ignition set voltage set in the ignition mode to the steady operation set current and maintains the output current at the steady operation set current,
Either the constant power control that maintains the output power at the steady operation set power by switching the set value of the steady operation from the ignition set voltage set in the ignition mode to the steady operation set power can be selected.
The switching control of the control unit switches from the ignition mode to the steady operation mode when the output current reaches the ignition set current and the output voltage falls to the plasma generation voltage, the constant voltage control, the constant current control 2. The DC power supply device according to claim 1, wherein control selected from the constant power control is performed.
A current source step-down chopper that constitutes a DC source;
A multi-phase inverter unit that converts the DC output of the current source step-down chopper unit into multi-phase AC power by operation of a plurality of switching elements;
A rectification unit that converts the output of the multiphase inverter unit into AC / DC and supplies the obtained direct current to a load, a chopper control unit that controls the current source step-down chopper unit, and an inverter control unit that controls the multiphase inverter unit In a control method of a DC power supply device that includes a controller having
The control unit controls switching between an ignition mode for supplying an ignition voltage for generating plasma discharge to the plasma generator and a steady operation mode for continuing plasma discharge of the plasma generator controlled by the chopper controller. ,and,
Performing intermittent short-circuit control to intermittently short-circuit the positive voltage side and negative voltage side of the current source step-down chopper unit or the multiphase inverter unit,
In the ignition mode, the control unit controls a boost operation by a short-circuit current flowing in the current source step-down chopper unit by the intermittent short-circuit control, and controls an output voltage applied to the plasma generator. Control method of power supply.
The control unit performs the intermittent short circuit control by the inverter control unit,
In the intermittent short circuit control, the inverter control unit,
A gate pulse signal for controlling the pulse width of the switching element of the bridge circuit constituting the multiphase inverter, and a short-circuit pulse signal for intermittently short-circuiting the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the bridge circuit,
A control signal is generated by superimposing the gate pulse signal and the short-circuit pulse signal,
The multi-phase inverter unit is controlled by the control signal, and the pair of switching elements forming a pair by connecting the positive voltage side and the negative voltage side of the bridge circuit in series by the short circuit pulse signal are simultaneously turned on. 11. The method for controlling a DC power supply device according to claim 10, wherein the positive voltage side and negative voltage side terminals of the bridge circuit are short-circuited.
In the ignition mode, the control unit repeats boosting by a short circuit current a plurality of times to increase the output voltage to the ignition set voltage, and the constant voltage that maintains the output voltage at the ignition set voltage by the chopper control unit. Switch between control and
12. The method of controlling a DC power supply device according to claim 10, wherein after the output voltage reaches an ignition set voltage, switching from step-up control to constant voltage control is performed.
The control unit uses the chopper control on-duty ratio of the chopper control unit and the number of intermittent short-circuit controls as parameters,
Control the input voltage of the current source step-down chopper by the on-duty ratio,
Control the boost ratio by the number of intermittent short-circuit control,
13. The method of controlling a DC power supply device according to claim 12, wherein a voltage increase of the output voltage is controlled by the input voltage and the boost ratio.
The steady operation mode is:
Constant voltage control that maintains the output voltage at the steady operation set voltage by switching the set value for steady operation from the ignition set voltage set in the ignition mode to the steady operation set voltage,
Constant current control that switches the set value for steady operation from the ignition set voltage set in the ignition mode to the steady operation set current and maintains the output current at the steady operation set current,
Either the constant power control that maintains the output power at the steady operation set power by switching the set value of the steady operation from the ignition set voltage set in the ignition mode to the steady operation set power can be selected.
The switching control of the control unit switches from the ignition mode to the steady operation mode when the output current reaches the ignition set current and the output voltage falls to the plasma generation voltage, the constant voltage control, the constant current control The method according to claim 10, wherein control selected from the constant power control is performed.